Bandsaw machines provided with an improved material holding vise

ABSTRACT

A bandsaw machine is provided with a material holding vise which is so constructed that each of a fixed and a movable vise jaw has in the vicinity of its center a vertical elongate opening which is located in alignment with the plane of the cutting area of a bandsaw blade so that the bandsaw blade can pass therethrough to cut a material. The fixed vise jaw consists of two jaw elements, while the movable vise jaw is bifurcated into two jaw elements and is an integral part of a movable support member. The movable support member is adapted to serve as a work table for supporting the material and has at one end a chute for cut chips. The movable support member is also provided on its underside with a rack facing downward for tightly securing the material between the vise jaws.

United States Patent Tsuchiya 1 1 Jan. 28, 1975 BANDSAW MACHINES PROVIDED WITH AN IMPROVED MATERIAL HOLDING VISE Inventor: .Iiro Tsuchiya, 5-1-16, Tsurukawa.

3,656,388 4/1972 Valentc 83/456 Primary I:'.\'aminerDonald R. Schran Atlorney, Agent, or Firm-Jones, Thomas & Askew [57] ABSTRACT A bandsaw machine is provided with a material holding vise which is so constructed that each of a fixed and a movable vise jaw has in the vicinity of its center a vertical elongate opening which is located in alignment with the plane of the cutting area of a bandsaw blade so that the bandsaw blade can pass therethrough to cut a material. The fixed vise jaw consists of two jaw elements, while the movable vise jaw is bifurcated into two jaw elements and is an integral part of a movable support member. The movable support member is adapted to serve a work table for supporting the material and has at one end a chute for cut chips. The movable support member is also provided on its underside with a rack facing downward for tightly securing the material between the vise jaws.

2 Claims, 5 Drawing Figures PATENTED JAN 2 8 I975 SHEET 2 OF 5 PATENTEDJAN28I975 FIG. 3

sum 3 or 5 FATENTEDJANZBISYS SHEET 4 [IF 5 PATENTVEDJANZBIBYS v sum 50F 5 F IG 5 BANDSAW MACHINES PROVIDED WITH AN IMPROVED MATERIAL HOLDING VISE BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention This invention relates generally to bandsaw machines, and pertains more particularly to bandsaw machines provided with an improved material holding vise in which a material to be cut is clamped on both sides of the plane of the cutting area of the bandsaw blade so that the end portion of the material to be cut from the main body of material is also held by the vise.

2. Description of the Prior Art In conventional bandsaw machines, the vise for holding the material to be out has been so designed that the material is clamped only on one side of the plane of the cutting area of the bandsaw blade, i.e., the side from which the material is fed to the saw blade, and therefore the end portion of material to be cut from the main body of material can not be held by the vise. Accordingly, even in a bandsaw machine of the type in which the material is clamped very near the cutting plane of the bandsaw blade, a longer portion of material to be clamped by the vise has been required. When a piece of material has become short as a result of several cutting operations, the material can not be cut into regular workpieces and therefore has to be scrapped. Furthermore, once each cutting operation has been completed, the piece cut from the main body of material has a tendency to roll away from the vise and off the work table since it is not held by the vise, making the use of such a machine hazardous.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of this invention to provide a bandsaw machine equipped with a vise in which the vise jaws have narrow vertical-elongate openings, or slots, whose centers are located along the plane of the cutting area of the bandsaw blade and through which the saw blade is free to move without hindrance, allowing the material to be cut to be clamped on both sides of the cutting plane of the bandsaw blade.

It is another object of this invention to provide a tightening mechanism adapted for the novel vise of the present invention.

It is a further object of this invention to provide the novel vise with a chute for chips which have been cut.

Other and further objects of this invention will be apparent from the following description and claims and are illustrated in the accompanying drawings which, by way of illustration, show the preferred embodiment of the present invention and the principle thereof.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a bandsaw machine provided with a vise in accordance with the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a plan view of the vise of the present invention, in which a movable vise jaw is shown as separated the maximum distance from a fixed vise jaw.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken substantially along the line IIIIII of FIG. 2 and having parts thereof broken away to illustrate details of construction.

FIG. 4 is a view similar to FIG. 3 but differing therefrom in that in FIG. 4 the vise jaws are illustrated as being clamping a smaller material than shown in FIG. 3, which is shown as being cut by a bandsaw blade.

FIG. 5 is a sectional view taken along the plane of the line V-V of FIG. 3.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The present invention will be particularly described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

In FIG. 1, the numeral 1 designates generally a bandsaw machine which is conventional in that an endless bandsaw blade 3 trained over a driving wheel 5 and a driven wheel 7 mounted within a housing 9 is lowered with the guide of saw guides 11 and 13 towards a material M to be cut which has been placed on a work table mounted on a base 15.

Mounted on the base 15 of the bandsaw machine 1 is an elongate base frame 17 which comprises elongate walls 17fand 17r having elongate plates 19 and 21, respectively, secured thereon. Along the length of each of the inside surfaces of elongate plates 19 and 21 are grooves l7wf and l7wr (as shown in FIG. 3).

In FIGS. 1 and 2 there is shown a fixed vise jaw 23 comprising a front jaw element 23f and a rear jaw element 23r which is so mounted on the top end of the base frame 17 by means ofbolts 25 as to form a vertical elongate opening, or slot, 23v0 between the jaw elements and also to form a horizontal wide opening 23110 above the right end of the base frame 17 as viewed in FIG. 2. On the other hand, a movable vise jaw 27 is bifurcated into a front jaw element 27fand a rearjaw element 27r to form a vertical elongate opening or slot 27v0 and the vise jaw 27 is constructed as an integral part of a movable support block 29. On both sides of support block 29 are horizontal elongate flanges 29ff and 29fr which are slidable along the grooves l7wfand l7wr, respectively. As will be apparent from FIGS. 2 and 5, the fixed vise jaw 23 and the movable vise jaw 27 are so designed that the vertical elongate openings 23v0 and 27v0 are formed in the vicinity of the centers of the tops of the vise jaws and extend downwards to the top surface of the movable support block 29. Also, the vertical centers of the vertical elongate openings 23v0 and 27v0 are located in alignment with the plane of the cutting area of the bandsaw blade 3 so that the saw blade 3 can be moved therethrough during the cutting operation without hindrance. It will now be understood that the movable vise jaw 27 is movable integrally with the movable support block 29 which is slidable along the grooves l7wf and l7wr towards and away from the fixed vise jaw 23. The two vise jaw grip the material M to be cut. The bandsaw blade 3 can be moved through the vertical elongate openings 23m and 27v0 of the vise jaws 23 and 27.

As viewed in FIG. 3 and 4, the movable support block 29 has at its left end a lowered portion, or depression, 29d and at its right end an inclined chute 290 down which cut chips can slide. Also, support block 29 is provided on the underside with a rack 31 which will be described later. The movable support block 29 has on its upper surface a channel-like groove 29g'which is as wide as the vertical elongate openings 23vo and 27v0 of the jaws 23 and 27 and extends from the bottom of the vertical openings 27v0 towards the fixed vise jaw 23, allowing the bandsaw blade to be run therethrough without damaging the upper surface of themovable support block 29 upon completing the cutting of the material M. As is readily apparent, the movable support block 29 is adapted to serve as a work table for supporting the material M and also to serve as an integral part of the movable vise jaw 27 to clamp the material M in cooperation with the fixed vise jaw 23.

As best shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the base frame 17 is provided at its left end with a support plate 33, on which is mounted a single-acting hydraulic cylinder 35 formed with a hydraulic fluid port 35p connected with a conduit 37 for hydraulic fluid. Thus, a piston rod 39 secured to a piston 41 within the hydraulic cylinder 35 extends into the interior of the base frame 17 through openings through the support plate 33 and the base frame 17. Also, a return spring 43 is provided around the piston rod 39 within the hydraulic cylinder to bias the piston 41 towards the port 35p.

Pivotally connected to the end of the piston rod 39 through a pin 47 is an arm 45 which has at its free end a pawl 45p to engage with the rack 31 provided on the underside of the movable support block 29. A roller 49 is rotatably provided at the free end of the arm 45 through a pin 51. On the bottom of the interior of the base frame 17, a plate spring 53 having a sloped portion 53s is so provided as to be located in the vicinity of the free end of the arm 45 when the piston rod 39 is retracted as far as possible towards the exterior of base frame 17. Thus, when the piston rod is being extended, the roller 49 provided at the free end of the arm 45 rolls up the slope 53s of the plate spring 53 so that the pawl 45p of the arm 45 can engage with the rack 31.

The operation of the apparatus described above will be now described.

The material M to be cut is placed on the movable support block 29 in contact with the fixed vise jaw 23 in such a manner that the portion to be cut or the kerf line to be made on the material is located in the cutting plane of the saw band 3 through the vertical centers of the vertical elongate openings 23v0 and 27v0 of the vise jaws 23 and 27. Then, the movable vise jaw 27 is manually moved into contact with the material as shown by the broken lines in FIG. 3. Next, when the hydraulic fluid is delivered from the conduit 37 into the hydraulic cylinder 35, the piston 41 will be forced against the bias of the return spring 43 to move the piston rod 39 and the arm 45 connected therewith into the interior of the base frame 17. Accordingly, the roller 49 is forced to roll up the sloped portion 53s of the plate spring 53 to bring the pawl 45p of the arm 45 into engagement with the rack 31, and the movable vise jaw 27 is directed towards and against the material M which is in contact with the fixed vise jaw 23. As a result, the fixed vise jaw and the movable vise jaw are located on the area of both sides of the cutting plane of the band saw.

Next, the bandsaw blade 3 is started and lowered through the vertical elongate openings 23v0 of the fixed vise jaw 23 and 27vo of the movable vise jaw 27 to cut the material M. When a cycle of the cutting operation is nearly completed, the saw guides 11 and 13 continue to be easily lowered because the horizontally wide opening 23h0 is provided above the right end of the base frame 17 as viewed in FIG. 2 and the depression 29d is provided at the left end of the movable support block 29 as viewed in FIGS. 3 and 4. Also, since the movable support block 29 is provided on its upper surface with a channel-like groove 29g through which the saw blade 3 can move, the saw blade 3 can cut completely through the material M without damaging the movable support block 29.

As shown in FIG. 4, when a small material M is cut. the span between the fixed vise jaw 23 and the movable vise jaw 27 is short and therefore the movable support block 29 is moved to the right of the base frame 17. However, since the movable support block 29 is provided with the chute 290 for removing cut chips from the cutting operation, the cut chips coming down from the saw guide 11 do not pile up on the movable support block 29. Therefore, the saw guide 11 and the saw blade 3 are not prevented by the cut chips from being lowered.

After the completion of one cycle of the cutting operation, the hydraulic fluid of the hydraulic cylinder 35 is opened to atmospheric pressure, and the piston 41 and the piston rod 39 are retracted by the return spring 41. The arm 45 disengages with the rack 31 during the retraction of the piston and piston rod. Thus, the movable vise jaw 27 is free from clamping pressure and can be manually moved out of contact with the material M.

As has been described, the vise apparatus according to the present invention is so designed that the material M to be cut is clamped on both sides of the plane of the cutting area of the bandsaw blade 3. Accordingly, even if the material M has become very short as a result of several cycles of the cutting operation, it can still be firmly gripped by the vise, and therefore one piece of material can be completely used and cut into regular workpieces without being scrapped. Thus, the material can be most economically cut and used. Since the end portion of material to be cut from the main body of material is also held, the piece cut from the main body of material can not suddenly drop down from the vise or the work table and cause an injury. Moreover, since the rack 31 for forcing the vise faces downward, it can not get clogged or damaged by cut chips coming from the cutting operation.

Although the preferred forms of the present invention have been illustrated and described, it should be understood that the apparatus is capable of modification by one skilled in the art without departing from the principles of the invention as described hereinbefore and as defined in the appended claims.

The embodiments of the invention in which an exclusive property or privilege is claimed are defined as follows:

1. A bandsaw machine comprising a fixed vise jaw which is fixed to a bed, a movable vise jaw which is movable to approach or withdraw from the fixed vise jaw on the bed, said fixed vise jaw defining a vertically elongate opening in the vicinity of the center thereof, said movable vise jaw defining a vertically elongate opening in the vicinity of the center thereof, said fixed vise jaw and movable vise jaw being constructed and arranged so that said opening in the movable vise jaw aligns with the opening in the fixed vise jaw to provide an elongate passageway between the fixed vise jaw and movable vise jaw, and a bandsaw blade which is movable vertically into and out of said passageway while cutting a work piece retained between said fixed vise jaw and said movable vise jaw.

2. A bandsaw machine as defined in claim 1 including a rack disposed beneath the moveable vise jaw and attached thereto, an hydraulic cylinder fixed to said bed and including a piston rod for movement into and out of said cylinder, an arm rotatably attached to said pis- 3 ,862,5 8 3 5 6 ton rod, a finger attached to said arm, said finger being stantially vertical movement to said finger into and out constructed and arranged to seat for engagement of engagement with said rack as said piston rod is within said rack, and a roller affixed for rotation to said moved into and out of said cylinder. finger for rolling along a slanted plate to impart sub- 

1. A bandsaw machine comprising a fixed vise jaw which is fixed to a bed, a movable vise jaw which is movable to approach or withdraw from the fixed vise jaw on the bed, said fixed vise jaw defining a vertically elongate opening in the vicinity of the center thereof, said movable vise jaw defining a vertically elongate opening in the vicinity of the center thereof, said fixed vise jaw and movable vise jaw being constructed and arranged so that said opening in the movable vise jaw aligns with the opening in the fixed vise jaw to provide an elongate passageway between the fixed vise jaw and movable vise jaw, and a bandsaw blade which is movable vertically into and out of said passageway while cutting a work piece retained between said fixed vise jaw and said movable vise jaw.
 2. A bandsaw machine as defined in claim 1 including a rack disposed beneath the moveable vise jaw and attached thereto, an hydraulic cylinder fixed to said bed and including a piston rod for movement into and out of said cylinder, an arm rotatably attached to said piston rod, a finger attached to said arm, said finger being constructed and arranged to seat for engagement within said rack, and a roller affixed for rotation to said finger for rolling along a slanted plate to impart substantially vertical movement to said finger into and out of engagement with said rack as said piston rod is moved into and out of said cylinder. 